Garment

ABSTRACT

A garment especially suitable for wear as an outer garment during cold weather, which can be opened along the legs for ease of entry and removal and which can be opened along the backside to permit the wearer to perform necessary bodily functions. A continuous zipper closure permits the dual functional operation with the closure extending transversely of the garment at the back portion thereof being covered to prevent visual exposure with the cover portion being held in operative position by a body-encircling belt.

United States Patent. [191 [52] US. Cl .2/79 [51] Int. Cl. ..A41d 13/02 [58] Field Of Search ..2/79, 80, 78 R, 271

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,849,717 9/1958 Klotz ..2/79 1,272,928 7/1918 Elliott ..2/79 2,923,009 2/1960 Cookman ..2/79 X 1,192,288 7/1916 Emery ..2/79 1,611,420 12/1926 .r2/79 Cuddy Schifman 1 Jan. 23, 1973 1 GARMENT FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS l l lnvgnwfl Henry Schlfmam Far Rockaway- 253,460 11/1948 Switzerland ..2/19 -Y- 662,174 3/1929 France ..2/79 I [73] Assignee: Relrlgwear, lnc., lnwood, NJ.

Primary Exammer-H. Hampton Hunter [22] Filed: Jan. 21, 1971 AttorneyBlum, Moscovitz, Friedman & Kaplan [57] ABSTRACT A garment especially suitable for wear as an outer garment during cold weather, which can be opened along the legs for ease of entry and removal and which can be opened along the backside to permit the wearer to perform necessary bodily functions. A continuous zipper closure permits the dual functional operation with the closure extending transversely of the garment at the back portion thereof being covered to prevent visual exposure with the cover portion being held in operative position by a body-encircling belt.

2 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJAN 23 I975 FIG. 2

INVENIOR. HENRY SCHIFMAN IiY 441m weawf;

GARMENT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Cold weather garments have long been known in the art and it is known that a one-piece garment maximizes the effective warmth of a garment by minimizing the escape of body heat. However, such garments are generally difficult to put on and remove, especially if the user is wearing boots. Furthermore, such garments normally require complete or substantially complete removal if the wearer must perform usual body functions.

While garments having drop seats which permit bodily functions to be performed without removing the garments have long been known, such garments are usually instantaneously visually identifiable and thus lacking in fashionable appeal. While such garments may be suitable for children or for indoor wear, such garments, prior to the instant invention, have generally been considered unacceptable for adult wear, especially for outdoor use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Generally speaking, in accordance with the invention, a one-piece garment is provided for outdoor, cold weather wear, which includes a closure device capable of performing the dual functions of permitting easy donning and removal, even over bulky boots, and permitting access interiorally of the garment, through the rear portion thereof, with the portion of the closure at the rear of the garment being hidden from view during normal wearing.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a cold weather garment of improved construction.

Another object of the invention is to provide a onepiece garment of improved construction having a rear access portion operated by a closure and means for preventing visual sighting of the closure in the normal wearing condition of the garment.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved one-piece garment having closuremeans which provides an access opening at the rear of the garment and means for opening the legs of the garment during donning and removal.

Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification.

The invention accordingly comprises an article of manufacture possessing the features, properties, and the relation of elements which will be exemplified in the article hereinafter described, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING For a fuller understanding of the invention, reference is had to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a garment constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the instant invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view thereof with portions broken away for the sake of clarity; and

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view at an enlarged scale taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a garment of preferred construction isindicated generally at 11. The garment includes an upper torso portion 12 having sleeves l3 and a hood 14 closed by a zipper closure 15. The closed hood may be'drawn in about the head of the wearer by means of a drawstring 16. The lower portion of the garment is formed with a pair of legs 17 to cover the legs of the wearer.

Viewing the rear portion of the garment, the upper portion includes a back panel 19 and a seat panel 20 which extends downwardly of back panel 19 to cover the backside of the wearer. Legs 17 extend below seat panel 20.

Access through the front of the garment is provided by a closure and closure flap 25 extending generally from the neck portion below hood 14 to the crotch of the garment located generally at the in-seam meeting point of legs 17.

A continuous zipper closure 18 extends along the out-seam of legs 17 and along the back of the garment between back panel 19 and seat panel 20. Four sliders 31, 32, 33 and 34 are carried by continuous zipper closure 18 for effecting operation of the zipper closure.

Referring to FIG. 1, slider 31 is shown in position adjacent the cuff of right leg 17 with the zipper closure on the outseam of the right leg being closed. If slider 31 is raised to be approximately level with the crotch of the garment, the entire right leg of the garment will be open, thereby permitting the wearer to easily step into or out of the right leg, even though he may be wearing a boot which would not normally fit through the leg when the zipper is fully closed.

Referring to FIG. 2, slider 32 is shown adjacent the cuff of left leg 17 with the zipper along the out-seam of the left leg being closed. In a like manner, slider 32 may be raised to permit opening of the left leg so that the wearer may place his leg into or remove it from the left leg of the garment. With zippers 31 and 32 in the raised position and with closure and closure flap 25 open, the wearer can easily step into or out of the garment. In donning the garment, sliders 31 and 32 will be raised, whereafter sliders 31 and 32 are zipped downwardly along the out-seam of the respective legs to close the legs of the garment about the legs of the wearer. Straps 24 are provided for tightening the cuff portion of each leg about the legs or boots of the wearer to minimize the entry of cold air or snow.

As aforenoted, zipper closure 18 also carries sliders 33 and 34 which are shown in FIG. 2 as positioned along the middle of the back of the wearer substantially at the waist. If the wearer requires access through the seat panel of the garment without removing the entire garment, each of sliders 33 and 34 can be slid away from one another and downwardly along the respective leg outseams to a level approximating that of the crotch of the garment. Such sliding action of sliders 33 and 34 effects an opening of a portion of zipper closure 18 to separate seat panel 20 from back panel 19, thereby permitting seat panel 20 to drop down to the phantom line position shown in FIG. 2. In this manner, the wearer can perform normal bodily functions without the necessity of removing the entire garment.

In order to render the garment acceptable for outdoor use, especially by adults, means are provided for blocking visual sighting of the portion of zipper closure 18 extending along the waistline of the garment between back panel 19 and seat panel 20. Referring especially to FIG. 3, back panel 19 is joined to seat panel 20 by means of zipper 18 with zipper tape 18A stitched to back panel 19 and zipper tape 18B stitched to seat panel 20. An envelope 21 extends along the entire back portion of the garment at the waistline (FIG. 2). Envelope 21 is secured to back panel 19, such as by means of stitching 26, which also secures zipper tape 18A to back panel 19. Envelope 21 hangs down over the exterior of the garment, completely visually cover ing the zipper closure 18 at the waistline of the garment. However, as the only line of attachment of envelope 21 to the gannent is at the back panel 19 by means of stitching 26, envelope 21 can be physically lifted for access to sliders 33 and 34.

Envelope 21 is formed with a through passage 27 in which is mounted a belt 22 which encircles the body of the wearer and the ends of belt 22 are joinable at the front of the garment by means of a buckle 23. With the garment on the wearer and the buckle closed as shown in FIG. 1, envelope 21 acts as a guide for the belt overlying the rear portion of the garment at the waistband and the belt holds the envelope 21 in a position flat against back panel 19 and seat panel 20 so as to assure that envelope 21 overlies zipper closure 18 at the waistline portion.

Envelope 21 performs a dual function. It serves in place of belt loops to properly position belt 22 and prevent its loss. Envelope 21 also acts to cover the portion of zipper closure 18 positioned in the area of the waistline so that the garment has an attractive appearance and does not appear to be a drop seat garment. Envelope 21 aids in the stylized appearance of the garment by covering the waistline portion of zipper closure 18. Belt 22 acts to not only tighten the garment about the wearers waistline but to assure that envelope 21 remains in overlying position during the normal wearing operation.

When it is desired to lower seat panel 20, it is merely necessary to open buckle 23 to permit envelope 21 to be raised and sliders 33 and 34 can be thereafter separated to permit seat panel 20 to assume the phantom position shown in FIG. 2.

1n the dropped position of seat panel 20, it is also possible for the wearer to have access to pants pockets of any inner garment he may be wearing. Alternately, sliders 32 or 33 can be raised to permit pant pocket access.

It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efficiently attained and, since certain changes may be made in the above article without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

What is claimed is: l. A one-piece garment primarily for outwear, cold weather use, comprising an upper torso portion, sleeves on the upper torso portion, means defining a pair of leg portions extending downwardly from said upper torso portion, a seat panel extending upwardly from said leg portions at the rear of the garment, said seat panel meeting said upper torso portion at a joining line, closure means defining a closure for disconnectably joining said seat panel to said torso portion along said joining line, said closure means being continuous from the cuff of one leg portion to the cuff of the other leg portion, closure concealing means carried by said garment for overlying said closure means in the area of the waistline of the garment along the joining line between said seat panel and said upper torso portion, said closure concealing means comprising a flap secured to said upper torso portion above said joining line, said flap being continuous along the joining line between said seat panel and said upper torso portion, said flap including means defining a longitudinal passage therethrough, and a body encircling belt extending through said longitudinal passage, said belt, when in body-encircling position, holding said flap against said garment in overlying relationship with a portion of said closure means.

2. A one-piece garment as claimed in claim 1 wherein said closure means consists of a zipper having four sliders thereon.

* i k k 

1. A one-piece garment primarily for outwear, cold weather use, comprising an upper torso portion, sleeves on the upper torso portion, means defining a pair of leg portions extending downwardly from said upper torso portion, a seat panel extending upwardly from said leg portions at the rear of the garment, said seat panel meeting said upper torso portion at a joining line, closure means defining a closure for disconnectably joining said seat panel to said torso portion along said joining line, said closure means being continuous from the cuff of one leg portion to the cuff of the other leg portion, closure concealing means carried by said garment for overlying said closure means in the area of the waistline of the garment along the joining line between said seat panel and said upper torso portion, said closure concealing means comprising a flap secured to said upper torso portion above said joining line, said flap being continuous along the joining line between said seat panel and said upper torso portion, said flap including means defining a longitudinal passage therethrough, and a body encircling belt extending through said longitudinal passage, said belt, when in bodyencircling position, holding said flap against said garment in overlying relationship with a portion of said closure means.
 2. A one-piece garment as claimed in claim 1 wherein said closure means consists of a zipper having four sliders thereon. 